CHAPTER I :: CHAPTER II :: CHAPTER III :: CHAPTER IV :: CHAPTER V :: ICONOGRAPHY :: HOME :: CONTACTTeorban, Ukraine, beginning of 18th century
Inv. No MNP-I.348
Measurements (mm):
Total length: 1130
Max width: 330
String length (gut):
Double-strung courses (from bass register to treble)
string number course vibrating length tuned from... 1 855 upper peg frame 1 855 upper peg frame 2 855 upper peg frame 2 855 upper peg frame 3 855 upper peg frame 3 855 upper peg frame 4 577 lower peg frame 4 577 lower peg frame 5 577 lower peg frame 5 577 lower peg frame 6 577 lower peg frame 6 577 lower peg frame 7 577 lower peg frame 7 577 lower peg frame 8 577 lower peg frame 8 577 lower peg frame Single-string courses (from bass to treble):
string number course vibrating length tuned form... 9 577 lower peg frame 10 577 lower peg frame 11 577 lower peg frame 12 577 lower peg frame 13 348 right side of back 14 330 right side of back 15 315 right side of back 16 298 right side of back 17 280 right side of back 18 265 right side of back 19 245 right side of back 20 225 right side of back 21 205 right side of back 22 182 right side of back 23 160 right side of back 24 140 right side of back The lengths of five metal, sympathetic strings are unknown, since there is no way to judge the positions of the hitch-pins without x-ray photos.
Material description and morphology:
The pear-shaped body consists of twelve strips of palisander wood, that at the right edge being half the width of the rest. Between the strips there are black-coloured wooden fillets of 2mm width, which are of exceptionally good craft. Inside, the palisander strips are reinforced by means of linen cloth. The edges of the back, where joined with the belly, are ornamented by wooden ribbon-intarsia of light and dark-coloured birch-wood, [consisting of] thin strips with rectangular points, inserted in zigzag pattern, sort of carpenter's semi-finished article. A similar pattern is found on the front of the neck. The belly has single purfling, and the edge is inlaid with ebony and mother-of-pearl (in a chevron pattern). The belly is made of two pieces of spruce. On the very bottom, and near the end of the bass bridge, there are inlayed ornaments (palisander and walnut): two scrolls with a triangular-like figure in the middle. It is possithat the soundhole ornament is missing. The belly is supported by ribs. The bridge seems to be repaired and altered since there is the evidence of additional pieces in treble part. Underneath, inside the body, there are probably hitch-pins for extra (sympathetic) strings, but the tuning pegs are inserted on the top part of the back of the body (near the joint with the neck). The nut, inserted between upper peg frame and lower peg frame, is made of fairly soft, black-coloured wood, and fixed into the frame by a single dovetail joint. The nut, placed at the end of lower peg frame, is made of ivory and seems not to be original. The nut at the right rim of the belly is of walnut. The neck is made of black-coloured maple, with an extra thin piece of exotic wood surrounded by the aforementioned bright-dark-coloured wooden ribbon. The current strings are not original. The pegs, of heart-like outline, are made of bright, hard, exotic wood. This particular instrument, from the collection of the National Museum, Poznan, displays good craftsmanship.
State of preservation:
The instrument has been restored: a few cracks on the ribs of the back, completion of the chevron pattern edge, new nut, and cracks on the belly. Eleven pegs, replaced later, are made of birch.
Performance practice:
Plucked instrument, partially fretted (courses 4-12). Morphologically lute-theorbo-like; functionally of bandura type, but also at the same time the tuning mechanism for five sympathetic strings is somewhat similar to early nineteenth-century Russian guitars, being tuned from behind of the instrument by a special tuning tool. The musical structure of the instrument gives the opportunity to perform structures of accompanimental character, since there are three bass courses, nine courses with the possibility of playing chords, and twelve courses only for figurative melody. To play only chords is also possible. The extra set of twelve strings, tuned from the belly, derives from bandura-type instruments, and is played by the middle, ring and little fingers. The instrument is evidence of the blending of instrument-making traditions such as those of the Western European theorbo, the Ukrainian bandura and the Russian guitar. Since we have no sources of clear appearance to be played by teorban, we can take into considerations literary sources and say that the repertoire was of dancing character and at also as an accompaniament for epic songs.
Cultural context:
The usage of this instrument seems to be connected with noble courts musical life in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in the Polish-speaking area of Europe, which included part of lands of contemporary Ukraina. There are several pieces of evidence in memoirs and letters that the status of this instrument was fairly high. Zygmunt Gloger wrote the teorban was the most favourite instrument noble people who played the instrument on their own or employed the teorban-players. The literary sources prove that the term teorba was in use at the beginning of 17th century but later on the term teorban appears, especially in 2nd half 18th century translations from Latin or 19th century historical novels such as works by Henryk Sienkiewicz.
Text & Photos:
© Alicja Knast National Museum, Poznan - Department Museum of Musical Instruments
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